Information image providing system, information image management server, and client

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a system having an information image management server, an advertising agency terminal and a client computer connected with one another via a network, in which the information image management server extracted a client computer which meets a client specifying condition on the basis of client specifying condition information from the advertising agency terminal, then a message to carry out update or addition of an information image recorded in a management area of the extracted client computer is transmitted to the extracted client, and the client computer which has received the message carries out update or addition of an information image in accordance with the message.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] This invention relates to an information image providing systemand an information image management server for updating or adding aninformation image so that an information image which an informationprovider wants to be visually recognized can be provided to a terminaluser conforming to a predetermined condition at an information terminal,which is mainly a personal computer or the like.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002] Conventionally, on the Internet, which is broadly used fortransmission of information, a program for Internet connectiondistributed by an Internet service provider to each user is proposed andactually used, which includes a function to display a special window ina display part of a user terminal machine and display an advertisingimage through this window, or which uses a layout having a display ofnews or the like combined with an advertising banner, as an advertisingtechnique.

[0003] There is also used a technique of transmitting advertisinginformation or the like through an e-mail to a pre-logged user.

[0004] These techniques might cause an increase in the advertising costand distribution cost and excessive use of communication resources ofthe network, since advertising information is equally distributed to allthe users irrespective of whether or not the users are interested in thedistributed advertising information.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

[0005] In view of the foregoing status of the art, it is an object ofthe present invention to realize an efficient information transmissiontechnique in which an information provider who provides information suchas advertising information selects in advance users to be advertisementdistribution targets on the basis of an information image alreadyacquired by users and provides a desired information image only theselected users.

[0006] In order to achieve the above-described object, an informationproviding system according to the present invention has a clientcomputer, an information image management server, and an advertisingagency terminal. The information providing system manages an informationimage including image information and related information recorded atthe client computer, thereby providing information to the clientcomputer.

[0007] The term “information image” used in this invention means apackage to be handled in one unit which consists of image informationand related information prescribing at least specific processing.Information image and image information refer to distinctly differentconcepts.

[0008] The client computer has a management area. The management areafunctions to record an information image and notify the informationimage management server of this recorded information image.

[0009] The advertising agency terminal sends client specifying conditioninformation to the information image management server and requests theinformation image management server to update or add a predeterminedinformation image only to a client computer which satisfies thecondition.

[0010] The information image management server, in response to therequest from the advertising agency terminal, updates or adds aninformation image with respect to the client computer which satisfiesthe conditions included in the client specifying condition information.

[0011] A client information recording unit of the information imagemanagement server operates to record information of a registeredinformation image sent from each client computer, for example,information image ID, in association with information for specifying theclient computer, for example, client ID.

[0012] A client extracting unit of the information image managementserver receives the client specifying condition information transmittedfrom the advertising agency terminal. The client specifying conditioninformation includes a condition related to the extraction of a clientcomputer recording what information image and update/addition contentsrelated to how and what information image is updated or what informationimage is added. The client extracting unit accesses and searches theclient information recording unit, thus extracting a client computerwhich satisfies the conditions included in the client specifyingcondition information and sending the information specifying the clientcomputer and the update/addition contents to an information image updateunit.

[0013] The information image update unit of the information imagemanagement server generates and sends a message for requesting each ofthe extracted client computers to execute the update/addition contents.Having received the message, the client computer updates/adds aninformation image recorded in a second management area in response tothe message. As a result, the operator of the client computer canoperate the updated information image in the second management area andcan acquire new information after the update/addition.

[0014] In the description of the present invention, the term “update ofinformation image” means the processing including replacement of all ora part of information images and addition of a new information image.For example, “update of information image” includes the processing toreplace image information constituting an information image with anotherimage information, or replace related information including items A andB with related information including items A, B and a new item C, orreplace one information image with a plurality of new informationimages.

[0015] When the operator carries out an operation on the basis of therelated information of the displayed information image, an operationrelated to the related information indicated by the operator's operationis carried out. Thus, using the information image as a medium, theinformation providing system leads the operator of the client computerto the information intended by the operator of the advertising agencyterminal, for example, the web page administered by the advertisingagency terminal, and allows the operator of the client to browse theinformation.

[0016] In the information providing system according to the presentinvention, the information image management server further has anextracted client information providing unit for sending back to theadvertising agency terminal, extracted client information related to theclient computer extracted on the basis of the client specifyingcondition information from the advertising agency terminal.

[0017] The extracted client information providing unit generatesextracted client information, for example, information related to thenumber of clients and the resultant distribution cost, on the basis ofthe client computer extracted by the client extracting unit, and sendssuch information to the advertising agency terminal.

[0018] Moreover, in the information providing system according to thepresent invention, the management area of the client computer sendsattribute information related to the client computer to the informationimage management server.

[0019] The term “attribute information” means personal informationrelated to the operator of the client computer.

[0020] As the client computer sends the attribute information to theinformation image management server, the information image managementserver records it in association with the information for specifying theclient, for example, the client ID.

[0021] Thus, the attribute information about the extracted clientcomputer is provided to the advertising agency terminal and theadvertising agency terminal selects client computers on the basis of theattribute information.

[0022] An information image management server according to the presentinvention extracts a client computer which satisfies a client specifyingcondition on the basis of client specifying condition information froman advertising agency terminal, and updates or adds an information imageas a package to be handled in one unit which consists of imageinformation and related information prescribing at least specificprocessing, recorded in a management area with respect to the extractedclient computer.

[0023] The client specifying condition information for selecting aclient computer to be a target of update or addition of an informationimage is sent from the advertising agency terminal to the informationimage management server. The client specifying condition informationincludes the description related to the presence/absence of aninformation image designated by the operator of the advertising agencyterminal. The information image management server reads the clientspecifying condition information, extracts a client computer whichsatisfies the condition on the basis of the condition included in theinformation, for example, the presence/absence of the information imagedesignated by the operator of the advertising agency terminal, andcarries out update or addition of an information image in the managementarea of the extracted client computer.

[0024] By thus using the information image, client management is carriedout easily and accurately by the information image management server andthe operator of the advertising agency acquires accurate marketinginformation. Moreover, since predetermined information is provided onlyto the client computer which satisfies the condition, the effect of theprovision of information such as the advertising effect is improved.

[0025] The other objects of the present invention and specificadvantages provided by the present invention will be clarified furtherfrom the following description of embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026]FIG. 1 shows the overall structure of an information providingsystem according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0027]FIG. 2 shows an exemplary structure of a client informationrecording unit.

[0028]FIG. 3 shows an exemplary overall structure of an informationimage management server.

[0029]FIG. 4 shows an exemplary structure of a client computer.

[0030]FIG. 5 shows an exemplary structure of an advertising agencyterminal.

[0031]FIG. 6 shows the operation of the information providing systemaccording to the first embodiment.

[0032]FIG. 7 shows an exemplary client extraction condition input screendisplayed at the advertising agency terminal.

[0033]FIG. 8 shows an exemplary client extraction condition input screendisplayed at the advertising agency terminal.

[0034]FIG. 9 shows an exemplary client extraction condition input screendisplayed at the advertising agency terminal.

[0035]FIG. 10 shows an exemplary structure of an information imagemanagement server according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention.

[0036]FIG. 11 shows an exemplary structure of an advertising agencyterminal in the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0037]FIG. 12 shows the operation of an information providing systemaccording to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0038]FIG. 13 shows an exemplary display screen for the advertisingagency terminal to display information related to an extracted clientcomputer, to an operator.

[0039]FIG. 14 shows an exemplary structure of an information imagemanagement server according to a third embodiment.

[0040]FIG. 15 shows an exemplary structure of an attribute informationrecording unit in the third embodiment.

[0041]FIG. 16 shows an exemplary structure of a client computer in thethird embodiment.

[0042]FIG. 17 shows an exemplary attribute information input screen atthe client computer.

[0043]FIG. 18 shows an exemplary extraction result display screendisplayed by an advertising agency terminal.

[0044]FIG. 19 shows an exemplary screen for displaying detailedinformation.

[0045]FIG. 20 shows an exemplary format of image information in whichrelated information is embedded.

[0046]FIG. 21 shows another exemplary format of image information inwhich related information is embedded.

[0047]FIG. 22 shows an exemplary graphic image displayed at the clientaccording to the present invention.

[0048]FIG. 23 shows an exemplary graphic image displayed at the clientaccording to the present invention.

[0049]FIG. 24 shows an exemplary graphic image displayed at the clientaccording to the present invention.

[0050]FIG. 25 shows an exemplary graphic image displayed at the clientaccording to the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0051] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to the attached drawings.

[0052] (1. Common Concept)

[0053] First, a common concept of the present invention will bedescribed. Particularly, “information image” according to the presentinvention will be described in detail.

[0054] In the present invention, “information image” means imageinformation containing related information and the like, as a package tobe handled in one unit which consists of image information and relatedinformation prescribing at least specific processing.

[0055] (1.1. Related Information)

[0056] Related information will be described. “Related information” isinformation as the basis of the operation in the case where an operatorof a client computer is caused to visually recognize an image and carryout a specific operation using this image as a key. That is, relatedinformation is information associated with image information. Forexample, if an operator of a client is to refer to information existingat a specific server, related information is information specifying thatinformation, such as URL or IP address. If a specific program is to berun, the name of the program or the program itself may be used as“related information.” For example, instruction information foracquiring new image information from a web server can be used as“related information.”

[0057] The information which specifies information may be informationspecifying an information image file itself or may be the URL of a pageas a key to the acquisition of an information image.

[0058] (1.2. Information Image Containing Image Information Togetherwith Related Information)

[0059] An information image containing related information, which issimilarly a common concept of the present invention, will now bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 20 and 21. The information containedin an information image can be related information, an identifier forspecifying the image, and attributes of the information image.

[0060]FIG. 20 shows an exemplary format of image information in whichrelated information is embedded.

[0061] The image information in this example uses an image of the GIFformat. However, the image format need not be limited to the GIF formatbut may be an arbitrary file format which is capable of containingrelated information such as the JPG or JPEG (Joint Photographic ExpertGroup) format or the PCX format.

[0062] A start part 2001 is a field provided for identifying that thepresent information is image information of the GIF format. A characterstring “GIF” and its version are allocated thereto.

[0063] Color table image data 2003 is image data such that pixels arearranged sequentially from left to right and from up to down. In thecase of the GIF format, this data is coded by using an LZW (Lempel ZivWelch) algorithm a variable length code.

[0064] A comment extension part 2005 contains text information which isnot graphic information in the GIF data stream. The comment extensionpart is constituted to include comments about graphics, names of partiesconcerned with production and explanation of contents, or all the otherdata about control and data that are not categorized as graphic data.This part is ignored in a typical display.

[0065] An end part 2006 indicates the end of the data stream and that noother parameter information follows this part.

[0066] A part 2002 between the start part 2001 and the color schemetable image data 2003, and a part 2004 between the color scheme tableimage data 2003 and the comment extension part 2005, contain otherinformation than the information contained in the parts 2001, 2003 and2005. For example, information including parameters defining necessaryareas on a display device for an image to be drawn is allocated such asscreen width, screen height, and color resolution.

[0067] Related information 2007 is directly arranged in the commentextension part 2005, or is arranged in the comment extension part 2005after being processed such as encryption or the like. The relatedinformation 2007 is incorporated in the comment extension part 2005 asingle piece of image information.

[0068] As a result, the image information as a data stream can containthe related information and identifier.

[0069] Although the GIF format is used in the above description, otherimage formats may be used as long as related information and the likecan be recorded in an area separate from the image information asdescribed above.

[0070] Another embedding format which is different from the embeddingformat to the image information shown in FIG. 20 will be described withreference to FIG. 21.

[0071]FIG. 21 shows another exemplary format of image information inwhich related information is embedded. Again, the image information usesan image of the GIF format. In this example, too, the format need not belimited to the GIF format but may be another arbitrary format such asthe JPG format or the PCX format.

[0072] A start part 2101 is a field provided for identifying that thepresent information is image information of the GIF format, similarly tothe above-described example. A character string “GIF” and its versionare allocated thereto.

[0073] Color scheme table image data 2103 is image data such that pixelsare arranged sequentially from left to right and from up to down. Inthis example, image information 2107 and related information 2108 areprovided in a mixed manner in the form of a digital watermark, thuspreventing visual recognition of the related information while enablingvisual recognition of the image information as it is (2109). Theinformation thus mixed is coded by using an LZW algorithm a variablelength code.

[0074] A comment extension part 2105 contains text information which isnot graphic information in the GIF data stream. This field is notparticularly required in this example, but if necessary, an informationprovider can use and freely define this field.

[0075] An end part 2106 indicates the end of the data stream and that noother parameter information follows this part.

[0076] Although the GIF format is also used in this example of theembedding format, other image formats may be used as long as imageinformation and related information can be recorded in a mixed manner asdescribed above.

[0077] (1.3. Graphic Image Displayed at Display Terminal)

[0078] Exemplary graphic images displayed at a client according to thepresent invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 22 to25.

[0079] (1.3.1. Exemplary Graphic Image Suitable for Computer)

[0080] First, in the case where a computer which supports an OS enablinggraphic display such as Windows 9x, Windows NT, Windows 2000, or Linuxis used as a display/operation terminal, it is preferred to employ lookand feel as shown in FIG. 22, which will be described hereinafter.

[0081] A display screen 2201 is, for example, a cathode-ray tube displayscreen, a TFT liquid crystal display screen, a screen in an informationdisplay device embedded in eyeglasses to be put on a human body, or thelike. The display screen 2201 acts so that a person can visually graspinformation from the display/operation device. Although the boundarypart of the display screen 2201 overlaps the outermost frame of thedisplay device in FIG. 22, the frame may be displayed within the displaydevice.

[0082] A one-touch window 2204 is a window for displaying at leastimages (or image information such as photographs, throughout thefollowing description) 2205, 2206. When an operator of the displaydevice has designated the image 2202 displayed in the window 2204 byusing an operating means, not shown, at least one piece of relatedinformation is displayed and certain processing based on thatinformation is started up. If there are a plurality of pieces of relatedinformation, the operator can select one of these and starts up certainprocessing based on the selected related information.

[0083] Specifically, the one-touch window 2204 on the display screen2201 acts as a special management area for guiding a specific operationusing the images 2205, 2206 as a key (that is, an area corresponding toa display part of the management area described in the presentinvention). Using an image displayed in this management area as a key,the operator of the information display device can realize a newoperation. If a mouse is provided as an operating means, a pop-up menuis caused to appear by clicking the right mouse button and relatedinformation is displayed there. If the related information includes aplurality of pieces of information, it is preferred to specify one ofthe pieces of related information by clicking the left mouse button.

[0084] An information provision window 2202 is a frame for displaying atleast an image 2203 or the like. When the operator of the informationdisplay device has specified an image displayed in this frame by usingan operating means, not shown, a new image is added and recorded to theone-touch window 2204 on the basis of that operation.

[0085] In this case, the image added to the one-touch window 2204 may bean image which is specified and displayed in the information provisionwindow 2202, or may be replaced by another image, if necessary. In theinformation provision window 2202, character information 2207 may bedisplayed other than the image.

[0086] Specifically, the information provision window 2202 on thedisplay screen 2201 acts as an information image presentation area whichdisplays images to interest the operator of the terminal and which leadsto the recording to the one-touch window 2204 as the operator of theterminal carries out an operation to specify an image.

[0087] With respect to the specifying operation by the operator of theinformation display device, when a pointing device such as a mouse isprovided on the operating means, it is desired to use a so-calleddrag-and-drop user interface technique in which the user designates animage to be recorded by using the pointer and drags and drops the imageon a one-touch frame 2202 (2208). Using this user interface isadvantageous because an operational feeling similar to that of otherWindows programs can be obtained when Internet Explorer or NetscapeNavigator is used as the information provision window 2202.

[0088] (1.3.2. Another Exemplary Graphic Image Suitable for Computer)

[0089] As another exemplary interface, windows as shown in FIGS. 23 and24 can be used.

[0090] Display screens 2301, 2401 are, for example, cathode-ray tubedisplay screens, TFT liquid crystal display screens, screens in displaydevices embedded in eyeglasses to be put on a human body, or the like.The display screens 2301, 2401 act so that a person can visually graspinformation from the display device.

[0091] An information display/recording window 2302 functions as aninterface which allows an operator to carry out an operation to displayand record an image acquired from an information provider.

[0092] An information provision tab 2303 is an interface element forselecting a management area provided within the area of the informationdisplay/recording window 2302. When this tab is active, an image sentfrom the information provider can be displayed in a first managementarea 2305. When the operator of the terminal of the information displaydevice has specified the image displayed in this area by using anoperating means, not shown, a new image is added on the basis of thatoperation to a second management area which is displayed when aone-touch tab 2304 becomes active.

[0093] The one-touch tab 2304 is an interface element for selecting amanagement area provided within the area of the informationdisplay/recording window 2302. When this tab is active, a managementarea is displayed and a new image according to an image designated forrecording in the information presentation area 2305 can be displayed inthe management area 2405. When the operator of the information displaydevice has specified the image displayed in the area by using anoperating means, not shown, at least one piece of related information isdisplayed on the basis of that operation and certain processing based onthe information is started up. If there are a plurality of pieces ofrelated information, one of these pieces of related information can beselected and certain processing based on the selected relatedinformation can be started up. That is, the management area 2405 on theinformation display/recording window 2402 acts as an area for guiding aspecific operation using images 2403, 2404 as a key. Using an imagedisplayed in this area as a key, the operator of the terminal canrealize a new operation.

[0094] Using this user interface is advantageous because the informationdisplay and recording operation can be completed in a small display areawhen the display screens 2301, 2401 have small areas or when the screenshave low resolution.

[0095] (1.3.3. Another Exemplary Graphic Image Suitable for DigitalTelevision or PDA)

[0096] In the case where an information image is used on a digitaltelevision or a portable terminal such as PDA (personal digitalassistance), it is preferred to employ look and feel as shown in FIG.25, which will be described hereinafter.

[0097] A display screen 2501 is a cathode-ray tube display screen, a TFTliquid crystal display screen, a screen in an information display deviceembedded in eyeglasses to be put on a human body, or the like. Thedisplay screen 2501 acts so that a person can visually grasp informationfrom the display/operation device. Again, though the boundary part ofthe display screen 2501 overlaps the outermost frame of the displaydevice in FIG. 25, the frame may be displayed within the display device.

[0098] A one-touch frame 2502 is a frame which functions similarly tothe one-touch window and displays at least an image 2508. When anoperator of the display device has designated the image 2508 by using anoperating means, not shown, at least one piece of related information isdisplayed and certain processing based on that information is startedup. If there are a plurality of pieces of related information, theoperator can select one of these and starts up certain processing basedon the selected related information. Specifically, the one-touch frame2502 on the display screen 2501 acts as a management area for guiding aspecific operation using the image 2508 as a key. Using an imagedisplayed in this management area as a key, the operator of the terminalcan realize a new operation.

[0099] An information provision window 2503 is a frame which functionssimilarly to the above-described information provision window anddisplays at least images 2505, 2506 and the like. When the operator ofthe information display device has specified an image displayed in thisframe 2503 by using an operating means, not shown, a new image is addedto the one-touch frame 2502 on the basis of that operation.

[0100] In this case, the image added to the one-touch frame 2502 may bean image displayed in the information provision window 2503, or may bereplaced by another image, if necessary. In the information provisionwindow 2503, character information 2507 may be displayed other than theimage.

[0101] Specifically, the information provision window 2503 on thedisplay screen 2501 acts as a special area which displays images tointerest the operator of the terminal and which leads to the recordingto the one-touch frame 2502 as the operator of the terminal carries outan operation to specify an image.

[0102] With respect to the specifying operation by the operator of thedisplay/operation device and the recording to the one-touch frame, whena pointing device such as a mouse is provided on the operating means, itis desired to use a so-called drag-and-drop user interface technique inwhich the user designates an image to be recorded by using the pointerand drags and drops the image on the one-touch frame 2502.

[0103] A contents display screen 2504 is a frame for displaying contentssuch as a movie in digital broadcast. The contents display screen 2504is an area used for displaying information which the operator of theterminal wants to acquire. The contents are not limited to moving imagesbut may include all the information that stimulates the human vision,such as still images and information of teletext broadcasting.

[0104] (1.4. Communication Between Information Provision Area andManagement Area)

[0105] Communication of related information and the like is carried outbetween the information provision area and the management area. Torealize this, inter-process or inter-thread communication is used. Ingeneral, various techniques can be selected for realizing inter-processor inter-thread communication. For example, a control unit forcontrolling the two areas can communicate using a common memory spaceand file. Alternatively, data communication can be carried out betweenthe information provision area and the management area by preparinganother process and establishing communication with the prepared processon the basis of the COM (Component Object Model) technique.

[0106] (2. Embodiments of the Present Invention)

[0107] (2.1. Structure of System According to First Embodiment of thePresent Invention)

[0108] The overall structure of a system according to a first embodimentof the present invention will now be described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0109] A system shown in FIG. 1 is constituted by an information imagemanagement server 101, an advertising agency terminal 102 and a clientcomputer 103, each of which is connected to a network 104 and thusoperates. Although not essential to the present invention, aninformation image providing server 105 is connected to the network 104.

[0110] (2.1.1. Network)

[0111] The network 104 acts so that devices connected thereto throughwired or wireless connection can transmit and receive information witheach other when a session is established to the target device.Therefore, though the network 104 is shown as a single backbone line forconnection in FIG. 1, a plurality of networks may be combined via agateway to realize the network 104, like the Internet. Moreover, thedevices need not be connected directly to the backbone line as aso-called backbone and may be temporarily connected by PPP as long astransmission and reception of information between the devices can becarried out when a session is established.

[0112] (2.1.2. Information Image Management Server)

[0113] The information image management server 101 will now be describedwith reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. 2 shows an exemplary structure ofa client information recording unit 106. FIG. 3 shows an exemplaryoverall structure of the information image management server 101.

[0114] The information image management server 101 is connected to thenetwork 104 and includes a client information recording unit 106, aclient extracting unit 107 and an information image update unit 108.

[0115] The structure of the client information recording unit 106 willbe described with reference to FIG. 2.

[0116] The client information recording unit 106 communicates with theclient computer 103 which is directly or indirectly connected to enablecommunication with the information image management server, and alsocommunicates with the advertising agency terminal 102. The term“directly or indirectly” means that any of direct wired or wirelessconnection to the network 104, connection via a buffer and connectionvia a gateway as a network may be used as along as communication witheach other is possible. The client computer 103 sends a notification ofan information image recorded in a management area 110 of the clientcomputer to the information image management server 101. In this case,the client information recording unit 106, on the basis of thisnotification, decides at least information which enables uniqueidentification of the client computer (hereinafter referred to as clientID 201) and information image registration information, which isinformation related to an information image registered to the clientcomputer, and records such information as one record. The number ofpieces of registered image information included in one record can beincreased or decreased in accordance with the number of informationimages registered to the client computer.

[0117] The information image registration information may includeregistered information image specifying information, which isinformation for specifying an information image, for example, file nameof the information image, URL, or information image ID 204, 205, . . .uniquely allocated to the respective client computers, and may alsoinclude registration date and time 206, 207 and other information 208,209, if necessary. Recording all such information as a single record isadvantageous in taking various statistics.

[0118] The client extracting unit 107 will now be described.

[0119] The client extracting unit 107, functioning as a databasemanagement system (DBMS), can grasp which information image isregistered to the management area of the client computer, by making aninquiry using the client ID 201 as a key from another device such as theadvertising agency terminal 102. Moreover, by making an inquiry usingthe registered information image specifying information, the clientextracting unit 107 can grasp which client computer has the informationimage registered thereto.

[0120] The information image update unit 108 will now be described.

[0121] The information image update unit 108 can update a specificinformation image held by a specific client to another information imageor can add another new information image (hereinafter referred to asinformation image update/addition processing).

[0122] The client to be a target of the information imageupdate/addition processing is decided on the basis of the information(for example, client ID) specifying the client extracted by the clientextracting unit 107. The information image update unit 108 sendsinformation related to another information image or another newinformation image (hereinafter referred to as update/addition contentsinformation) to the client computers decided on the basis of theinformation specifying the client computers, and sends out to each ofthese clients a request to update or add recording on the basis of theabove-described another information image or another new informationimage. The update/addition contents information may be all or a part ofthe image information or related information. Alternatively, it ispossible to send only the information (for example, URL) of the placewhere such information is stored. An example of the place where suchinformation is recorded may be the information image providing server105 or any device connected to the network 104, such as the advertisingagency terminal 102.

[0123] A client information acquiring unit 309 will be describedhereinafter.

[0124] The client information acquiring unit 309 has a function toacquire the information which enables unique identification of theclient computer and the information image registration information, sentthereto from each client computer, and to send the information to theclient information recording unit 106. Having received the information,the client information recording unit 106 records the information inassociation with the client ID 201.

[0125] A client specifying condition information acquiring unit 310 willbe described hereinafter.

[0126] The client specifying condition information acquiring unit 310has a function to receive the client specifying condition informationtransmitted from the advertising agency terminal 102 and to send it tothe client extracting unit 107. The client specifying conditioninformation includes a condition for allowing the client extracting unitto extract a client, for example, an extraction condition such thatinformation images A and B are recorded while an information image C isnot recorded.

[0127] The client specifying condition information may also include theupdate/addition contents information. In this case, the clientspecifying condition information acquiring unit 310 sends theupdate/addition contents information to the information image updateunit 108.

[0128] The client information acquiring unit, the client specifyingcondition information acquiring unit and the information image updateunit set up sessions with the client computers and the advertisingagency terminal to transmit and receive information. The preparation ofa session when using Windows as the OS is described in detail at theMSDN site of Microsoft Corporation, particularly at

[0129]http://www.asia.microsoft.com/japan/developer/library/vcsample/_sample_mfc_chatsrvr.htm and

[0130]http://www.asia.microsoft.com/japan/developer/library/vcsample/_sample_mfc_chatter.htm.

[0131] (2.1.3. Client Computer)

[0132] The client computer 103 is an information processing device suchas a personal computer, digital television, mobile telephone, PDA(personal digital assistance) or the like connected to the network 104.The connection mode may be direct wired connection or wirelessconnection. As described above, the functions of the management area 110are generated within the client computer 103. In general, thesefunctions are realized by a program.

[0133] (2.1.3.1. Exemplary Structure of Client Computer)

[0134] The client computer 103 will be described in detail withreference to FIG. 4.

[0135] An image display unit 401 is, for example, Internet Explorer ofMicrosoft Corporation. When an operator has given an instruction todownload information from a specific server, the image display unit 401,on the basis of the instruction, makes a logical connection to theinformation image providing server 105 via the network, acquires theinformation and displays it in an information presentation area 402.

[0136] The management area 110 is constituted by, for example, aninformation image recording unit 403, an information image recordingnotifying unit 404, an information image update executive unit 405, arelated information acquiring unit 406, an image display constitutingunit 407, an image specifying unit 408, and an operation decision unit409.

[0137] The client computer 103 further has an OS interface 410, whichfunctions as an interface for the management area 110 to transmit andreceive information to and from the information image management server101 and the information image providing server 105. The OS interface 410has, for example, a communication COM 411.

[0138] The communication COM 411 is a means for realizing communicationbetween processes (or threads, throughout the following description)using the Component Object Model, which is the function of the OS. Forexample, when a user interface operation such as drag-and-drop iscarried out, transmission of information from a process where theinformation is dragged to a process where the information is dropped isrealized. The COM is described in detail at the following site ofMicrosoft Corporation:

[0139] http://www/asia/microsoft.com/japan/COM/.

[0140] The information image recording unit 403 records an informationimage which is sent from the communication COM 411 or the informationimage update executive unit 405 and which contains image information andrelated information packaged to be handled in one unit. The imageinformation and the related information may be recorded in separatememories while these are still associated with each other, instead ofrecording the image information and the related information as aninformation image.

[0141] When an operation to register an information image is carried outby a drag-and-drop operation from the information presentation area 402to the management area 110, or when an operation to update/add aninformation image is carried out by the information image updateexecutive unit 405 which has received a predetermined instruction fromthe information image management server, the information image recordingunit 403 sends a notification to the effect that the information imageis registered to the management area, to the information imagemanagement server 101 via the information image recording notifying unit404.

[0142] The related information acquiring unit 406 is connected to theinformation image recording unit 403 and acquires only the relatedinformation from the information image recorded in the information imagerecording unit 403.

[0143] The information display constituting unit 407 is connected to theinformation image recording unit 403 and displays all or selected onesof the information images recorded in the information image recordingunit 403, as a display from the management area 110. That is, theoperator is enabled to perceive an image according to the informationimage through the one-touch frame or the one-touch window.

[0144] When the operator has specified an image displayed in themanagement area by using the function of the OS interface 410, the imagespecifying unit 408 specifies an information image corresponding to thatimage.

[0145] The operation decision unit 409 is connected to the imagespecifying unit 408 and to the related information acquiring unit 406and executes an operation based on the related information in theinformation image specified by the operator. For example, if the relatedinformation is a link to the URL of the web page, the operation decisionunit 409 functions to execute jump to that URL or to request the browserto execute jump.

[0146] (2.1.3.2. Exemplary Operation of Client)

[0147] The operation in the case where the client is constituted asshown in FIG. 4 will now be described.

[0148] The operator of the client acquires page information includinginformation images from the information image providing server 105 andcauses the page information to be displayed in the informationpresentation area 402 of the image display unit 401. In this case, ifInternet Explorer is used as the image display unit, an operation todisplay a web page of the server in accordance with the HTTP (HyperTextTransfer Protocol) is carried out.

[0149] When the operator of the client views the image displayed in theinformation presentation area 402 and decides an image to be recordedinto the management area 110, an operation to shift this image to themanagement area 110 by a drag-and-drop operation is carried out. In thiscase, since the image to be dragged and dropped is an information image,it is to be recorded into the information image recording unit 403through the communication COM 411. Along with this, a notification tothe effect that the information image is registered to the managementarea 110 is sent to the information image management server 101 throughthe information image recording notifying unit 404.

[0150] The registration of the information image to the management areamay also be carried out without registering from the informationpresentation area 402, as the information image update executive unit405 executes update/addition of the recording contents of theinformation image recording unit 403 in accordance with a message ofinformation image update/addition processing sent from the informationimage management server 101. In this case, too, a notification to theeffect that the information image is registered to the management area110 is sent to the information image management server 101 through theinformation image recording notifying unit 404.

[0151] By carrying out such an operation, the information imagemanagement server 101 can constantly correctly record which clientcomputer has what information image registered thereto.

[0152] Meanwhile, the information image recorded in the informationimage recording unit 403 of the management area 110 is displayed to theoperator of the client computer via the OS interface 410 by the actionof the image display constituting unit 407. When the operator of theclient carries out an operation based on the related informationrecorded in the displayed information image, an operation related to therelated information is carried out by the actions of the imagespecifying unit 408 and the operation decision unit 409. For example, ifthe URL of another information image providing server is included as therelated information, the page of this URL is displayed to promptdownload of another information image.

[0153] On the other hand, if an instruction to update/add an informationimage to be displayed in the management area 110 is given from theinformation image management server 101, a notification is sent to theinformation image update executive unit 405 together with theinformation image to be updated/added or information (for example, theURL) indicating the place where the information image is recorded. Theinformation image update executive unit 405 carries out addition orupdate of the information image recorded in the information imagerecording unit 403, using the received information image. If theinformation indicating the place where the information image is recordedis provided, the information image update executive unit 405 acquiresthe data of the information image in accordance with that informationand carries out addition or update of the information image recorded inthe information image recording unit 403, using the data.

[0154] (2.1.4. Advertising Agency Terminal)

[0155] The advertising agency terminal 102 is connected to the network104 and has a function to communicate with other device via the network.The advertising agency terminal 102 is an information processing devicesuch as a personal computer, digital television, mobile telephone, PDA(personal digital assistance) or the like. The connection mode may bedirect wired connection or wireless connection. For example, if theinformation processing device has Windows (registered trademark) ofMicrosoft Corporation loaded thereon as its operating system, it isdesired that so-called browser software is loaded such as InternetExplorer (registered trademark) of Microsoft Corporation or NetscapeNavigator (registered trademark), Netscape Communications Corporation orthe like.

[0156] The reason for using the term “advertising agency terminal” isthat in most cases, a distributor of information images is anadvertising agency requested by an advertiser. Therefore, an advertisingagency terminal is not limited to a terminal equipment used at anadvertising agency. An “advertising agency terminal” means aninformation terminal equipment operated by a person who wants todistribute an information image, including an advertising agent.

[0157] The advertising agency terminal 102 has a client specifyingcondition information processing unit 111 having a function to send theinformation image management server 101 a notification of clientspecifying conditions for selecting clients to which the informationimage is to be distributed.

[0158]FIG. 5 shows an exemplary structure of the advertising agencyterminal 102. The advertising agency terminal 102 has the clientspecifying condition information processing unit 111, an input unit 501,and OS interface 502.

[0159] The OS interface 502 has a communication interface function forthe advertising agency terminal 102 to transmit and receive informationto and from the information image management server 101, and a userinterface function to input and output information between the operatorof the terminal 102, and the information image management server 101 andthe client specifying condition information processing unit 111.

[0160] The input unit 501 is a means having a function to convertdesired client specifying condition information inputted by the operatorinto data and to send the data to the client specifying conditioninformation processing unit 111. The input unit 501 is, for example, akeyboard, pointing device, speech input system or the like. The operatoruses the input unit 501 to input what information image is to bedistributed to which client computer.

[0161] It is preferred that the form of distribution of informationimages can be arbitrarily set in accordance with the request from theoperator of the advertising agency terminal. For example, it ispreferred that the operator can freely designate the distribution formin accordance with the marketing strategy or the like, for example,handling only the image information constituting a certain informationimage A as different image information, replacing all or a part of therelated information constituting a certain information image A withdifferent related information, adding new related information to therelated information constituting a certain information image A,replacing a certain information image A with a totally differentinformation image A′, or adding one or more information images which arenot registered by the client computer.

[0162] On receiving the client specifying condition information in theform of data from the input unit 501, the client specifying conditioninformation processing unit 111 configures the information in a dataformat that can be transmitted to the information image managementserver 101. As the conditions for selecting clients, the clientspecifying condition information includes information for specifyingwhat information image is held or not held by the client computer, andalso includes information about what information image is to bedistributed. For example, the client specifying condition information isdescribed by a combination of information image ID from the input unitand a logical operator such as “AND,” “OR,” “NOT” or “EXOR.” The clientspecifying condition information also includes information about aninformation image to be distributed. For example, the client specifyingcondition information may include data of a new information image to beadded or the URL of the place where it is recorded. Moreover, the clientspecifying condition information may include information specifying aninformation image to be updated, for example, information image ID andinformation about update contents such as related information to bereplaced.

[0163] The client specifying condition information processing unit 111generates data by converting such client specifying conditioninformation into data and sends the data to the OS interface 502. Then,OS interface functions to set up connection with the information imagemanagement server and then send the client specifying conditioninformation in the form of data to the information image managementserver in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol.

[0164] (2.1.5. Information Image Providing Server)

[0165] The information image providing server 105 is connected to thenetwork 104. When an information image providing request is sent theretovia the network, for example, when an information image is embedded in acertain web page and a certain client is requesting for display of theweb page, the information image providing server 105 sends the recordedinformation image to the requesting party in response to the request.Particularly when an information image is recorded therein and a requestfor provision of this information image is sent thereto via the network,the information image providing server 105 provides this informationimage to the requesting party.

[0166] The information image providing server 105 is not necessarilyrequired in the embodiment of the present invention. If the operator ofthe client newly starts using the management area, it is normallyconsidered that no information image is registered. In such a case, themanagement area of the client requests the providing server to presentavailable information images. In response to this request, themanagement server 101 sends the client a web page presenting a pluralityof information images registered to the management server and thusprompts the operator of the client computer to acquire a desiredinformation image. Thus, it will contribute to the distribution ofinformation images according to the present invention.

[0167] (2.2. Operation of System According to First Embodiment of thePresent Invention)

[0168] The operation of the system described in the first embodiment ofthe present invention will now be described with reference to FIG. 6. Inthe following description, FIGS. 7, 8 and 9 are supplementally used.

[0169] Although “client computer 1” and “client computer 2” are shown asclient computers in FIG. 6, the present embodiment is not limited to thetwo clients, which are simply examples of a plurality of clients.

[0170]FIG. 6 shows a scenario in the case where the system of thepresent embodiment operates. In this scenario, after an informationimage is taken in and registered to a client computer from theinformation image providing server, the operator of the advertisingagency terminal executes update or addition of an information image andthis update or addition is reflected on the client computer. FIGS. 7, 8and 9 show a series of exemplary input screens presented by theadvertising agency terminal to the operator for preparing the clientspecifying condition information to be sent to the information imagemanagement server.

[0171] Referring again to FIG. 6, first, the client computer 1 accessesthe information image providing server and requests for a web pagecontaining an information image (601). Then, in response to thisrequest, the information image providing server transmits a web pagecontaining a certain information image (hereinafter referred to as“information image X”) to the client computer 1 (602). The clientcomputer 1 displays, in the information image presentation area, theinformation image transmitted from the information image providingserver. The operator carries out a predetermined operation such asdrag-and-drop on the displayed information image and registers it to themanagement area. Thus, the information image X is recorded in theinformation image recording unit of the management area (603). Theclient computer 1 also sends a notification of the registeredinformation image to the information image management server (604).Having received the notification, the information image managementserver records, in its client information recording unit, the client IDof the client computer 1 in association with the information image ID ofthe information image X (605).

[0172] Similarly, the client computer 2 acquires the information image Xfrom the information image providing server and registers it to themanagement area. Specifically, the client 2 accesses the informationimage providing server and requests for a web page containing theinformation image X (606). Then, in response to this request, theinformation image providing server transmits a web page containing theinformation image X to the client 2 (607). The client computer 2displays, in the information image presentation area, the informationimage transmitted from the information image providing server. Theoperator carries out a predetermined operation such as drag-and-drop onthe displayed information image and registers it to the management area.Thus, the information image X is recorded in the information imagerecording unit of the management area (608). The client computer 2 alsosends a notification of the registered information image to theinformation image management server (609). Having received thenotification, the information image management server records, in itsclient information recording unit, the client ID of the client 2 inassociation with the information image ID of the information image X(610).

[0173] Next, as the advertising agency terminal 102 accesses theinformation image management server 101 and establishes a connectionthereto, the client specifying condition information is sent from theadvertising agency terminal 102 to the information image managementserver 101 (611).

[0174]FIG. 7 shows an exemplary input screen used when the operator atthe advertising agency terminal generates the client specifyingcondition information.

[0175] First, the ID number or the like for specifying the advertisingagency is inputted to an input box 701 for inputting the advertisingagency ID. This can be used for identification and accounting.

[0176] Then, the client extraction conditions such as which informationimage is held and which information image is not held are inputted. Inthis exemplary input screen, the information image ID or file name isinputted to an input box 702. The operator may press the scroll buttonso that the information image ID or file name is displayed, and theoperator may select the information image ID or file name. When theinformation image ID or file name is selected, the correspondinginformation image is displayed in an information image display area 703.This enables the operator to easily confirm which information image hasbeen selected. Moreover, a logical operator selection area 704 isprovided, enabling extraction of a client based on various conditions.

[0177] In accordance with the client extraction conditions, two or moreinformation images can be selected. With respect to the secondinformation image, too, an information image ID or file name input box705, an information image display area 706 and a logical operatorselection area 707 are provided so that conditions for a combination ofvarious information images can be set. The same applies to the third andsubsequent information images.

[0178] If further processing is to be continued after the end of theinput of the client extraction conditions as described above, a button708 may be pressed to shift to the next input screen. If no furtherprocessing is desired, a cancel button 709 may be pressed to stop theclient extraction condition input processing.

[0179] The layout shown in FIG. 8 is that of an exemplary input screenfor an information image to be updated or added, which is displayed bypressing the button 708. In this screen, the operator first designatesupdate or addition of an information image by selecting one of thecorresponding buttons 811, 812. If the button 811 corresponding to theupdate is selected, an update target information image ID input section801 is used for inputting an identifier in order to decide whichinformation image is to be updated. For example, if the informationimage X is updated to a new information image X′, the information imageID of the information image X is inputted. Meanwhile, since theinformation image providing server 105 can identify the advertisingagency terminal 102 through a mechanism such as a cookie, an informationimage which is already registered by the advertising agency can bespecified. Therefore, in the case of transmitting HTML informationaccording to the present form, a reference button 807 for updating aregistered information image is provided. If the reference button ispressed, a list of information images already prepared at theinformation image generation server is displayed on an information imageID display section 804 and the identifier of an information image isdecided by selecting the information image.

[0180] On the other hand, if the button 812 corresponding to theaddition is selected, no input to the information image ID input section801 is necessary.

[0181] This form also includes a text box for inputting a comment 802about a new link or the like. The text inputted here is specified in themanagement area 110 of the client computer, as a text to be displayed asrelated information for causing a specific operation.

[0182] This form also includes a text box 803 indicating the URL. TheURL described in this text box corresponds to the related informationfor causing the specific operation. If the related information specifiedby the operator in the management area 110 of the client is related tothe comment 802, the URL operates so that the information imagepresentation area of the client accesses the URL designated by the textbox 803.

[0183] Moreover, related information 804 contained in the update targetinformation image is displayed in this form. Specifically, if the updateof the information image is to be carried out by using the referencebutton in the information image ID input section 801, the relatedinformation held by the information image is displayed. Therefore, if anew preparation button is pressed, nothing is displayed in this partbecause no related information has been registered yet. The displayedrelated information can be text-edited and can be easily modified.

[0184] Furthermore, an image information specifying section 809 isprovided in this form. When updating or newly preparing an informationimage, image information constituting an updated information image or aninformation image to be added is specified from this image informationspecifying section 809. Therefore, a reference button 810 is provided sothat image information recorded at the advertising agency terminal 102or the like can be specified.

[0185] As a temporary registration button 805 is pressed on completionof the input of the form, the advertising agency terminal 102constitutes a page for confirming the information contents from theprovided information and displays the page.

[0186]FIG. 9 shows an example of this page for confirmation. The pagesent for confirmation includes an area 904 for displaying relatedinformation, and an area 905 for displaying an image to be displayed inthe management area 110 of the client computer, so that the relatedinformation and the image can be confirmed. If the operator of theadvertising agency terminal 102 decides the completion of the input as aresult of the confirmation, the confirmation is completed by pressing anexecution button 902. If the operator wants to redo the input, theoperator can go back to the previous processing by pressing a redobutton 903.

[0187] If the execution button 902 is pressed, the advertising agencyterminal 102 established a connection with the information managementserver 101 and then transmits the client specifying conditioninformation thereto (step 611).

[0188] Having received the client specifying condition information, theinformation image management server 101 processes the client specifyingcondition information (612). Specifically, in the information imagemanagement server 101, the client extracting unit 107 extracts, on thebasis of the information, client ID which meets the conditions from theclient information recording unit 106 and sends the extracted client IDto the information image update unit 108. Meanwhile, the clientspecifying condition information acquiring unit 310 extracts data of aninformation image to be updated or added, from the client specifyingcondition information, and sends it to the information image update unit108. Having received the extracted client ID and data, the informationimage update unit 108 sends update/addition contents information to theclient computers corresponding to the extracted client ID and transmitsto each of the client computers a request for updating or addingcontents in the information image recording unit 403 on the basis of theupdate/addition contents information (613, 614). The update/additioncontents information may be all or a part of the image information orrelated information. Alternatively, it is also possible to transmit onlythe information about the place where the image information and relatedinformation are stored (for example, URL).

[0189] In this example, if the client extraction condition is that “theclient has an information image X registered thereto,” the informationimage management server 101 sends the above-described request to boththe client computer 1 and the client computer 2.

[0190] This request may be sent separately to the individual clientcomputers or may be sent by using a multicast IP address group describedin an RFC (request for comments) 1112.

[0191] The generation of the information image need not be carried outat the advertising agency terminal 102. The advertising agency terminal102 may sends data about the related information and data about theimage information to the information image management server 101 and theinformation image management server 101 may constitute the informationimage using these data.

[0192] Having received the request, the client computer rewrites thecontents in the information image recording unit 403 in accordance withthe contents of the request (615, 616). The updated information image oradded information image is displayed as an image in the management area110 by the image display constituting unit 407 and the OS interface 410.The operator of the client can browse the related information of theinformation image. Using the related information as a medium, theoperator of the advertising agency terminal can distribute desiredinformation, for example, advertising information, only a desired clientcomputer.

[0193] Through this recording operation, the management area sends theinformation image management server 101 a notification that a newinformation image is recorded (617, 618). As this notification is sent,the information image management server 101 records the recording of thenew information image to the database contained in the clientinformation recording unit 106 (619, 620). By this operation, theinformation image management server 101 can constantly grasp theinformation image registered to each client computer.

[0194] (2.3. Advantage of First Embodiment)

[0195] According to the present embodiment, since an information imagecan be distributed selectively only to a specific client computer fromthe advertising agency terminal, it is possible to quickly improve theresult of information distribution, particularly, the cost-effectivenessof distribution of advertising information.

[0196] (3. Second Embodiment)

[0197] A second embodiment of the present invention will now bedescribed.

[0198] The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment inthat when client specifying condition information is sent from theadvertising agency terminal 102 to the information image managementserver 101, the information image management server 101 sendsinformation about a client extracted on the basis of the clientspecifying condition information to the advertising agency terminal 102before sending update/addition contents information to a target clientcomputer.

[0199] (3.1. Structure of Second Embodiment)

[0200] While the overall structure of the system in the secondembodiment is similar to the overall structure of the system shown inFIG. 1, the structures of the advertising agency terminal 102 and theinformation image management server 101 are different from those in thefirst embodiment.

[0201]FIG. 10 shows an exemplary structure of the information imagemanagement server 101 of the second embodiment. The structure of theinformation image management server 101 of the present embodiment isdifferent from that of the information image management server 101 ofthe first embodiment, in that the information image management server101 of the present embodiment has an extracted client informationproviding unit 1001 which receives information about a client computerextracted by a client extracting unit and sends it to the advertisingagency terminal 102. The other parts of the structure are the same asthose of the information image management server 101 of the firstembodiment shown in FIG. 3 and therefore the same constituent elementsin FIG. 10 are denoted by the reference numerals used in FIG. 3.

[0202]FIG. 11 shows an exemplary structure of the advertising agencyterminal 102 of the second embodiment. The structure of the advertisingagency terminal 102 of the present embodiment is different from that ofthe advertising agency terminal 102 of the first embodiment, in that theadvertising agency terminal 102 of the present embodiment has aninformation image update decision notifying unit 1101 which generates aninformation image update decision notification signal when apredetermined operation such as pressing of an update execution buttonis carried out and sends the information image update decisionnotification signal to the information image management server 101 viaan OS interface 502, and an extracted client information display unit1102 which receives the information about the extracted client computersent from the information image management server via the OS interface502 and displays it to the operator in a recognizable manner. The otherparts of the structure are the same as those of the advertising agencyterminal 102 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 5 and therefore thesame constituent elements in FIG. 11 are denoted by the referencenumerals used in FIG. 5.

[0203] (3.2. Operation in Second Embodiment)

[0204] The operation of the above-described system of the secondembodiment will now be described with reference to FIG. 12. In thefollowing description, FIG. 13 is used supplementally. FIG. 12 shows ascenario in the case where the system of the present embodimentoperates. FIG. 13 shows an exemplary display screen for the advertisingagency terminal to present to the operator the information about theextracted client sent from the information image management server.

[0205] In the present embodiment, the operations at each client computerto acquire an information image from the information image providingserver 105 or the like, register the information image and send anotification of the registered information image to the informationimage management server 101, and the operation at the information imagemanagement server 101 to register client information on the basis of thenotification (601 to 605, 606 to 610) are similar to the operations inthe first embodiment shown in FIG. 6.

[0206] Next, as the advertising agency terminal 102 accesses theinformation image management server 101 and sets up a connectionthereto, the client specifying condition information is sent from theadvertising agency terminal 102 to the information image managementserver 101 (611). Again, this operation is similar to the operation inthe first embodiment shown in FIG. 6.

[0207] Having receives the client specifying condition information, theinformation image management server 101 extracts client computers whichmeet the conditions based on the client specifying condition information(1201). Then, the information image management server 101 sendsinformation about the extracted client computers (extracted clientinformation), for example, the number of extracted client computers andthe like, to the advertising agency terminal 102 (1202).

[0208] Having received the extracted client information, the advertisingagency terminal 102 presents the contents of this information to theoperator in a recognizable manner. FIG. 13 shows an exemplary screendisplay of the extracted client information.

[0209] In the exemplary screen display, an area 1301 for displaying theadvertising agency terminal ID, an area 1302 for displaying thepreviously inputted extraction conditions, an area 1303 for displayingthe number of extracted client computers, an area 1304 for displayingthe cost for distributing an information image to the extracted clients,a cancel button 1305, and an update execution button 1306 are displayed.In the area 1302 for displaying the inputted extraction conditions, theextraction conditions previously specified at step 611 are displayedwithout any change so that the operator can confirm the contents of theextraction conditions. In the area 1303 for displaying the number ofextracted client computers, the number of extracted clients isdisplayed. Thus, the operator of the advertising agency terminal 102 canconfirm whether the number of extracted clients is appropriate or not.In the area 1304 for displaying the distribution cost, for example, anamount calculated by multiplying the number of clients by thedistribution cost for each client is displayed. Thus, the operator ofthe advertising agency terminal 102 can determine whether the number ofextracted clients is appropriate or not in view of the cost.

[0210] If, having reviewed the number of extracted clients and thedistribution cost displayed as described above, the operator of theadvertising agency terminal 102 wants to stop distributing an updated oradded information image or to change the extraction conditions, theoperator presses the cancel button 1305 to go back to the previousscreen. On the other hand, if the operator of the advertising agencyterminal 102 has decided to distribute an updated or added informationimage on the displayed conditions, the operator presses the updateexecution button 1306.

[0211] Referring again to FIG. 12, if the update execution button 1306is pressed, the advertising agency terminal 102 generates an informationimage update decision notification signal at the information imageupdate decision notifying unit 1101 and transmits this signal to theinformation image management server 101 via the network 104 (1203).

[0212] Having received the information image update decisionnotification signal, the information image management server 101transmits the updated or added information image to the client computersextracted at step S1201 on the basis of the client specifying conditioninformation provided at step S611 (613, 614). The transmission of theupdated or added information image, the registration of the informationimage in the management area of each client (615, 616), the transmissionof a notification that the information image is registered (617, 618),and the update of the database of the client information recording unitat the information image management server (619, 620) are similar to theprocessing in the first embodiment.

[0213] (3.3. Advantage of Present Embodiment)

[0214] According to the present embodiment, since an information imagecan be distributed selectively only to a specific client computer fromthe advertising agency terminal, it is possible to quickly improve theeffect of information distribution. Moreover, since an information imageis actually distributed after inputting client extraction conditionsfrom the advertising agency terminal and grasping the number ofinformation distributions, estimation of the cost of informationdistribution is made quick and easy. Thus, the advertising agency canreview and change the advertisement distribution plan in real time inview of the number of distributions and the cost.

[0215] (4. Third Embodiment)

[0216] A third embodiment of the present invention will now bedescribed. The third embodiment is different from the first and secondembodiments in that attribute information of client computers arecollected and recorded. Therefore, in the present embodiment, it ispossible to set more detailed extraction conditions by using theattribute information as extraction conditions in extracting the clientcomputers, and an advertisement provider or the like can provide moredetailed review information by providing the attribute information ofeach of the extracted client computers to the advertising agencyterminal 102.

[0217] (4.1. Structure and Operation of Third Embodiment)

[0218] The present embodiment can be used in combination with either thefirst embodiment or the second embodiment. Hereinafter, the presentembodiment combined with the second embodiment will be described as anexample. The overall structure of the system of the present embodimentis similar to the structure shown in FIG. 1.

[0219]FIG. 14 shows an exemplary structure of an information imagemanagement server 101 according to the present embodiment. Theinformation image management server 101 shown in FIG. 14 has a structuresimilar to the structure shown in FIG. 10 except that an attributeinformation recording unit 1401 connected to a client extracting unit isprovided.

[0220] The attribute information recording unit records attributeinformation of each client computer. “Attribute information” meanspersonal data about an operator of a client computer. For example,“attribute information” in this case includes age, sex, occupation,taste, hobby and the like.

[0221]FIG. 15 shows an exemplary structure of the attribute informationrecording unit 1401. In this example, a field 1501 for storing client IDto specify a client computer, a field 1502 for storing the age of theoperator of the client, a field 1503 for storing the sex of theoperator, a field 1504 for storing the occupation of the operator and afield 1505 for storing the interests of the operator are provided ineach record, and the corresponding data are stored in the respectivefields.

[0222] In FIG. 14, the attribute information recording unit 1401 isshown as a constituent element separate from the client informationrecording unit 106, for example, a separate table or database. However,the attribute information recording unit 1401 may be constituted as apart of the client information recording unit 106.

[0223] The data stored in the attribute information recording unit 1401is sent from each client computer to the information image managementserver 101 and then stored therein.

[0224]FIG. 16 shows an exemplary structure of a client computer in thepresent embodiment. The structure of the client is similar to thestructure shown in FIG. 4 except that a management area 110 has anattribute information acquiring unit 1601. Therefore, the samecomponents are denoted by the same numerals.

[0225]FIG. 17 shows an exemplary input screen for prompting the operatorof the client computer to input the attribute information. This screenmay be displayed, for example, when a program for executing themanagement area 110 is installed, or may be started up at anothertiming. This screen may be generated by the attribute informationacquiring unit 1601.

[0226] The operator inputs the attribute information such as his/herage, sex, occupation, taste and hobby in accordance with this inputscreen. On completion of the input, the attribute information acquiringunit 1601 of the management area 110 transmits the inputted attributeinformation to the information image management server 101. Havingreceived the attribute information, the information image managementserver 101 stores the information image in association with the clientID to the attribute information recording unit 1401.

[0227] A client extracting unit 107 is constituted to search theattribute information recording unit 1401 and acquire desiredinformation. Thus, it is possible to contain the condition related tothe attribute information into the client extraction conditions fromadvertising agency terminal 102. For example, client extractionconditions are set such that a client computer has recorded aninformation image X, is a male of an age of 20 to 30, and is interestedin music. Referring to the client information recording unit 106 and theattribute information recording unit 1401, the client extracting unit107 extracts client computers who meet these conditions.

[0228] Since the attribute information recording unit 1401 is provided,the detailed information about the clients extracted from theadvertising agency terminal 102 can be provided. FIG. 18 shows anexemplary extraction result display screen displayed by the advertisingagency terminal 102. This exemplary screen is basically similar to theexemplary screen shown in FIG. 13 but it is different in that a button1801 for requesting detailed display is provided.

[0229] When the operator of the advertising agency terminal 102 wants tosee the detailed information about the extracted client computers, theoperator presses the button 1801. If the button 1801 is pressed, theadvertising agency terminal 102 request the information image managementserver 101 to provide the detailed information. In response to thisrequest, the server 101 acquires from the attribute informationrecording unit 1401 the attribute information of each of the clientcomputers extracted by the client extracting unit 107, and sends theattribute information back to the advertising agency terminal 102. FIG.19 shows an exemplary screen for displaying the detailed information inaccordance with the pressing of the button 1801. Having received thedetailed information, the advertising agency terminal 102 displays it onthe screen shown in FIG. 19. In this screen, an area 1901 is providedfor displaying the detailed information about each of the extractedclient computers, and the detailed information is displayed in thisarea.

[0230] The operator of the advertising agency terminal 102 can reviewthe detailed information and can instantly review whether a desiredclient computer is extracted or not.

[0231] By pressing a return button 1902 on completion of the review, theoperator can go back to the screen shown in FIG. 18 and continue theprocessing.

[0232] (4.2. Advantage of Present Embodiment)

[0233] According to the present embodiment, the operator of theadvertising agency terminal 102 can carry out more appropriatedistribution information by using attribute information about clientcomputers.

[0234] (5. Others)

[0235] (5.1. Accounting)

[0236] By adding an accounting function unit in the information imagemanagement server 101, it is possible to construct a system which ismore useful for business. Specifically, the information image managementserver may record that an image information image update or additionmessage has been transmitted to a client computer, and the informationimage management server may calculate the number of distributions fromthis recording, thus carrying out accounting. In this case, anaccounting calculating unit may be added within the information imagemanagement server so as to acquire ID proper to the advertising agencyterminal along with the form input and calculate accounting informationfor each advertising agency by using the ID.

[0237] (5.2. Hierarchy of Information Image Management Server)

[0238] While the information image management server 101 is described asa single server in the above-described embodiments, it may beconstituted by a plurality of hierarchically ordered or layered servers.For example, the functions of the information image management server101 may be shared by an application server having the client extractingunit 107 and the information image update unit 108, and a databaseserver connected to the application server and having the clientinformation recording unit 106.

[0239] (5.3. Management Area, Client Specifying Condition InformationProcessing Unit, etc.)

[0240] Any of the management area 110 of the client computer 103, theclient specifying condition information processing unit 111 of theadvertising agency terminal 102, and the other constituent elementsdescribed above may be realized by a program installed in thecorresponding information equipment terminal, or may be realized by adistribute object (Java Applet, Active X, etc.) which is downloaded froma predetermined server and then executed.

[0241] Alternatively, these components may be realized by a back-endbased on a distributed platform stored on another server connected tothe network 104.

[0242] As is described above, according to the present invention, aclient having specific conditions can be extracted by using aninformation image and update or addition of the information image can becarried out only for this client computer. Therefore, the effect ofinformation distribution can be quickly improved.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

[0243] The present invention can be applied to a system such that aninformation provider can provide an information image which theinformation provider wants to be visually recognized by a targetcustomer, that is, a terminal user who meets conditions based theinformation provider's own marketing strategy or the like, by using anetwork or the like.

1. An information providing system comprising a client computer, aninformation image management server, and an advertising agency terminal,the information providing system being adapted for providing informationto a specific client computer which meets a search condition inputtedfrom the advertising agency terminal, wherein the client computercomprises a management area in which an information image includingimage information and related information prescribing at least specificprocessing, packaged to be handled in one unit, transmitted from aninformation image management server, can be recorded, the recordedinformation image can be displayed, and the proper processing accordingto the related information specified by an operator by using thedisplayed information image as a key can be carried out, the advertisingagency terminal comprises a client specifying condition informationprocessing unit for prompting input of client specifying conditioninformation including a condition for specifying a client computer as atarget of update or addition of a specific information image, sendingthe client specifying condition information to the information imagemanagement server, and generating a notification to permit update oraddition of an information image at the client computer, and theinformation image management server comprises a client informationrecording unit for recording, for each client computer, attributeinformation about the client computer, a client extracting unit forsearching the client information recording unit and extracts a clientcomputer which meets the condition in accordance with the clientspecifying condition information from the advertising agency terminal,and an information image update unit for carrying out update or additionof an information image recorded in the management area for theextracted client computer.
 2. The information providing system asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the information image management serverfurther comprises an extracted client information providing unit forgenerating extracted client information about the extracted clientcomputer and sending the extracted client information to the advertisingagency terminal, and the information image update unit of theinformation image management server carries out update or addition of aninformation image if it has received a notification to permit update oraddition of an information image from the advertising agency terminal.3. The information providing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein themanagement area of the client computer sends the attribute informationabout the client computer to the information image management server. 4.An information image management server for extracting a client computerwhich meets a client specifying condition on the basis of clientspecifying condition information from an advertising agency terminal,and carrying out update or addition of an information image includingimage information and related information prescribing at least specificprocessing, packaged to be handled in one unit, recorded in a managementarea for the extracted client computer.
 5. The information imagemanagement server as claimed in claim 4, wherein extracted clientinformation about the extracted client computer is generated, theextracted client information is sent to the advertising agency terminal,and update of an information image is executed if a notification topermit update or addition of an information image is received from theadvertising agency terminal which received the extracted clientinformation.
 6. The information image management server as claimed inclaim 4, further comprising an attribute information recording unit forrecording attribute information of the client computer in associationwith client information.
 7. An information image management methodcomprising: a first step of, if client specifying condition informationincluding a condition for specifying a client computer is received,searching a client information recording unit in which attributes of aclient computer are recorded in advance on the basis of the clientspecifying condition information, and acquiring client specifyinginformation which meets the condition; and a second step of executingupdate or addition of an information image on the basis of informationimage update information and the client specifying information.
 8. Theinformation image management method as claimed in claim 7, furthercomprising a third step of generating extracted client information onthe basis of the client specifying information, supplying the extractedclient information to an advertising agency terminal, and carrying outupdate or addition of an information image if a notification to permitupdate or addition of an information image is received from theadvertising agency terminal which received the extracted clientinformation.
 9. The information image management method as claimed inclaim 7, comprising a preceding step of acquiring attribute informationabout the client computer and recording the attribute information inassociation with the client specifying information.
 10. Acomputer-readable recording medium in which an information imagemanagement program is recorded, the information image management programcausing a computer to execute an information image management methodcomprising: a first step of, if client specifying condition informationincluding a condition for specifying a client computer is received,searching a client information recording unit in which attributes of aclient computer are recorded in advance on the basis of the clientspecifying condition information, and acquiring client specifyinginformation which meets the condition; and a second step of executingupdate or addition of an information image on the basis of informationimage update information and the client specifying information.
 11. Acomputer-readable recording medium in which an information imagemanagement program is recorded, the information image management programcausing a computer to execute an information image management methodcomprising: a first step of, if client specifying condition informationincluding a condition for specifying a client computer is received,searching a client information recording unit in which attributes of aclient computer are recorded in advance on the basis of the clientspecifying condition information, and acquiring client specifyinginformation which meets the condition; a second step of executing updateor addition of an information image on the basis of information imageupdate information and the client specifying information; and a thirdstep of generating extracted client information on the basis of theclient specifying information, supplying the extracted clientinformation to an advertising agency terminal, and carrying out updateor addition of an information image if a notification to permit updateor addition of an information image is received from the advertisingagency terminal which received the extracted client information.
 12. Acomputer-readable recording medium in which an information imagemanagement program is recorded, the information image management programcausing a computer to execute an information image management methodcomprising: a preceding step of acquiring attribute information about aclient computer and recording the attribute information in associationwith client specifying information; a first step of, if clientspecifying condition information including a condition for specifying aclient computer is received, searching a client information recordingunit in which attributes of a client computer are recorded in advance onthe basis of the client specifying condition information, and acquiringclient specifying information which meets the condition; and a secondstep of executing update or addition of an information image on thebasis of information image update information and the client specifyinginformation.
 13. A client computer for updating an information image inaccordance with information image update information, the clientcomputer comprising a management area in which an information imageincluding image information and related information prescribing at leastspecific processing, packaged to be handled in one unit, transmittedfrom an information image management server, can be recorded, therecorded information image can be displayed, and the proper processingaccording to the related information specified by an operator by usingthe displayed information image as a key can be carried out, themanagement area comprising: an information image recording unit forrecording an information image; an information image recording notifyingunit for generating and sending information image recording notificationinformation for notifying of the information image recorded in theinformation image recording unit; and an information image updateexecutive unit for receiving information image update informationgenerated on the basis of the information image recording notificationinformation and updating the information image recorded in theinformation image recording unit on the basis of the information imageupdate information.
 14. The client computer as claimed in claim 13,wherein the management area further comprises an attribute informationacquiring unit for acquiring attribute information about the clientcomputer and providing the attribute information.
 15. A recording mediumin which an information image management program is recorded, theinformation image management program causing a computer to constitute aclient computer comprising a management area in which an informationimage including image information and related information prescribing atleast specific processing, packaged to be handled in one unit,transmitted from an information image management server, can berecorded, the recorded information image can be displayed, and theproper processing according to the related information specified by anoperator by using the displayed information image as a key can becarried out, wherein the management area comprises: an information imagerecording unit for recording an information image; an information imagerecording notifying unit for generating and sending information imagerecording notification information for notifying of the informationimage recorded in the information image recording unit; and aninformation image update executive unit for receiving information imageupdate information generated on the basis of the information imagerecording notification information and updating the information imagerecorded in the information image recording unit on the basis of theinformation image update information.
 16. A recording medium in which aninformation image management program is recorded, the information imagemanagement program causing a computer to constitute a client computercomprising a management area in which an information image includingimage information and related information prescribing at least specificprocessing, packaged to be handled in one unit, transmitted from aninformation image management server, can be recorded, the recordedinformation image can be displayed, and the proper processing accordingto the related information specified by an operator by using thedisplayed information image as a key can be carried out, wherein themanagement area comprises: an information image recording unit forrecording an information image; an information image recording notifyingunit for generating and sending information image recording notificationinformation for notifying of the information image recorded in theinformation image recording unit; an information image update executiveunit for receiving information image update information generated on thebasis of the information image recording notification information andupdating the information image recorded in the information imagerecording unit on the basis of the information image update information;and an attribute information acquiring unit for acquiring attributeinformation about the client and providing the attribute information.17. An advertising agency terminal for requesting an information imagemanagement server to update an information image in an information imagemanagement system, the advertising agency terminal comprising: a clientspecifying condition information processing unit for generating clientspecifying condition information including a condition for specifying aclient computer, and sending the client specifying condition informationto the information image management server; an extracted clientinformation providing unit for receiving, from the information imagemanagement server, extracted client information generated on the basisof the client specifying condition information, and displaying theextracted client information; and an information image update decisionnotifying unit for notifying the information image management server ofa decision of update or addition of an information image based on theextracted client information.
 18. A recording medium in which aninformation image management program is recorded, the information imagemanagement program causing a computer to constitute an advertisingagency terminal comprising: a client specifying condition informationprocessing unit for generating client specifying condition informationincluding a condition for specifying a client computer, and sending theclient specifying condition information to an information imagemanagement server; an extracted client information providing unit forreceiving, from the information image management server, extractedclient information generated on the basis of the client specifyingcondition information, and displaying the extracted client information;and an information image update decision notifying unit for notifyingthe information image management server of a decision of update oraddition of an information image based on the extracted clientinformation.
 19. An information image management server comprising: aclient extracting unit for extracting a client computer which meets aclient specifying condition on the basis of client specifying conditioninformation from an advertising agency terminal; and an informationimage update unit for carrying out update or addition of an informationimage including image information and related information prescribing atleast specific processing, packaged to be handled in one unit, recordedin a management area for the extracted client computer.
 20. Theinformation image management server as claimed in claim 19, furthercomprising an extracted client information providing unit for generatingextracted client information about the extracted client computer andsending the extracted client information to the advertising agencyterminal, wherein the information image update unit executes update oraddition of an information image if it has received a notification topermit update or addition of an information image from the advertisingagency terminal which received the extracted client information.